Ohio Settles Lawsuit Involving Dropped Medicaid Recipients
COLUMBUS — About 154,000 Ohio residents will have their Medicaid health benefits restored and their eligibility for the program rechecked as part of a settlement reached in a lawsuit against the state, the state’s Department of Medicaid said today.
The agreement comes in a case involving how Ohio officials “re-determine” the eligibility of recipients in the federal-state health program for the poor and disabled.
In March, the Legal Aid Society of Columbus sued the state’s Medicaid director on behalf of several people and two nonprofits in central Ohio: the Community Refugee and Immigration Services and Community Development for All People. They claimed that some individuals’ Medicaid benefits were terminated or put at risk after Ohio failed to follow federal law and Medicaid regulations during the review process.
Among other issues, the legal group had argued that Ohio failed to conduct certain Medicaid renewal procedures and did not adequately notify recipients as to why coverage was being terminated and how to appeal.